intertextuality

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Recently I was watching ABC’s Good Game (you may wonder why someone like me, who doesn’t even own a gaming console, watches this show, but the simple reason is that they are interesting and funny).

The segment was on music in games, in particular a special event in Sydney called A Night in Fantasia. Performed by the Eminence Orchestra, it features music from anime and games, all beautifully brought to life by a full symphony orchestra.

Unfortunately, I only found out about this concert after their one and only 2009 performance. D’oh!

But it did remind me of a school trip to see a symphony orchestra perform back when I was in Grade 5. It was a special performance for young school children and featured a few different “important” pieces. The conductor would introduce each piece, telling us it’s name and also where else we might have heard it- in a famous movie, in a commercial, etc.

Besides this being my first experience of live orchestral music (which nothing can compare to), it was the first time I became aware of the intertexuality of everything we create and experience. Hearing this music that was familiar in completely another context was like a tap on the shoulder and a sharp reminder to always think about where things come from.

Weaving references to other people’s creations into what we make is another way we communicate with people. A stylistic reference can allude to similar functionality, using certain colours can create associations and engender certain feelings, and popping in a Star Wars reference or too can create an instant feeling of shared understanding… and maybe even a laugh or two.

April 05
Icons, icons and icons!

Building any kind of web interface, particularly one that requires any kind of human interactivity, will at some time utilise icons. Whether they be on buttons, used in headings, or tabs or panels, icons are like little visual pieces of informative haiku: small, succint and should make you smile.